January 2020 – The Modesto Symphony Orchestra (MSO), led by Associate Conductor Ryan Murray, will perform Pixar in Concert on Friday, January 24, 2020 at 7:30pm and Saturday, January 25, 2020 at 2pm at the Gallo Center for the Arts in Modesto. Experience the magic of your favorite Pixar films while the MSO performs the scores live. This concert is perfect for all ages as we revisit our favorite characters from The Incredibles, Monsters, Inc., Toy Story, Coco, and so many more.
“Pixar has given us some of the most iconic characters of the last 25 years,” said Caroline Nickel, President & CEO of the Modesto Symphony Orchestra Association. “From Woody and Buzz Lightyear, to Mr. Fredericksen in Up, to Miguel in Coco, Pixar has given us stories and characters that we all connect with on a personal level. These movies transcend generations and bring people together. Whether this concert brings back memories of raising your children or memories from your own childhood, we hope we can help bring people together to experience the magic of the films they love and present it in an entirely new way with the music performed live by our symphony orchestra.”
Pixar Animation Studios (also known simply as Pixar) began in 1979 as part of the Lucasfilm computer division before its spin-off in 1986. Pixar has produced 21 feature films, beginning with Toy Story in 1995, which was the first computer-animated feature film ever made; its most recent film was Toy Story 4 (2019). The studio has earned 19 Academy Awards, 8 Golden Globe Awards, and 11 Grammy Awards, along with numerous other awards and acknowledgments. Many of Pixar’s films have been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, since its inauguration in 2001, with the nine Pixar winners being: Finding Nemo (2003), The Incredibles (2004), Ratatouille (2007), WALL-E (2008), Up (2009), Toy Story 3 (2010), Brave (2012), Inside Out (2015), and Coco (2017). In addition to that award, Up and Toy Story 3 were also the second and third animated films, respectively, to be nominated for the more inclusive Academy Award for Best Picture (the first being Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Beauty and the Beast in 1991).
In 2012 Pixar launched “Pixar in Concert”, a compilation of imagery from each of the studio’s feature films accompanied by musical performance from a live orchestra. The inaugural performance was held in San Francisco by the San Francisco Symphony. It has since traveled the world, with imagery from Pixar’s most recent film added to the playlist.
Ryan Murray‘s dynamic conducting, natural musicality and deeply held passion for the arts have allowed him to steadily build a robust career since his professional debut at the age of just 22. Ryan is currently the Associate Conductor for the Modesto Symphony Orchestra and Music Director for the Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra; with whom he made his conducting debut at Carnegie Hall in 2014. Since his appointment in 2013, Ryan has consistently worked to improve the quality, skill and prominence of the youth orchestra, and now leads an ensemble that features over 60 students from the greater Modesto area. He is also Artistic Director of Opera Modesto and Resident Conductor & Choral Director of the Music in the Mountains Summer Festival in Nevada County, California. As part of a joint-collaboration, Ryan served as Music Director for Fresno Grand Opera’s mainstage productions of contemporary opera for two seasons, and previously served as a staff conductor for the Bay Area Summer Opera Theater Institute (BASOTI) and The Opera Academy of California in San Francisco. Effortlessly moving between genres, Ryan currently enjoys a wide range of performance genres & platforms, including traditional orchestral and operatic repertoire, pops performances, and a notable emphasis on contemporary American operatic works.
Ryan has recently garnered national recognition for his dynamic, compelling performances of contemporary opera and is the current winner of the 2016/17 American Prize in Opera Conducting for his highly lauded production of A Streetcar Named Desire. He was a 2016 semi-finalist for the Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music and received honorary mention for the American Prize in Youth Orchestra Conducting. Ryan is also a past winner of the Vienna Philharmonic’s prestigious Ansbacher Fellowship for Young Conductors, and spent the summer in residence alongside the Vienna Philharmonic at the 2014 Salzburg Festival.
Driven by a lifelong passion for learning, Ryan has attended masterclasses and seminars around the world. Ryan recently attended the 2017 Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music’s Conductors Workshop, and was one of just eight conductors worldwide to attend the Time of Music Summer Festival Masterclass in Finland led by Principal Guest Conductor of the Los Angles Philharmonic, Susanna Mälkki; he also recently attended a contemporary music symposium led by Alan Gilbert featuring the New York Philharmonic. Past events include the Aurora Chamber Festival in Sweden, where he studied under Maestro Kurt Masur, the Lucerne Festival Academy’s Conducting Masterclass in Switzerland, and the Eastman School of Music’s Summer Conducting Institute featuring the Rochester Philharmonic. Ryan holds degrees, summa cum laude, in Bassoon Performance and Voice Performance from California State University, Sacramento. Widely praised for his tireless work ethic, natural poise, and impassioned, inspired performances, Ryan continues to connect deeply with orchestras and audiences alike, and has proven to be a formidable presence on the podium.
MODESTO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA, PIXAR IN CONCERT
Friday, January 24, 2020 at 7:30 pm* and Saturday, January 25, 2020 at 2:00 pm
*Note new 7:30 pm start time
Ryan Murray, conductor Modesto Symphony Orchestra
Gallo Center for the Arts, Mary Stuart Rogers Theater
1000 I Street, Modesto
TICKETS: Pricing: $19 / 39 / 54 / 71 / 94
Tickets are available through the Gallo Center for the Arts Ticket Office at (209) 338-2100.
Group Prices available: Groups of 10+ receive a 15% discount on tickets. Call (209) 338-5064 for more information.
Ticket Office Hours: Monday through Friday 10:00am-6:00pm / Saturday 12:00pm-6:00pm
Tickets also available online at ModestoSymphony.org
